Kennedy and Khrushchev in Berlin

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The Cold War is raging. US President John F. Kennedy arrives in West Berlin in the morning of 26 June 1963. As he drives through the walled-in city, excited Berliners line the streets and give him a rapturous welcome. Children are given the day off school and businesses are closed. A reported 1.5 million people have come out to get a glimpse of Kennedy. His visit culminates with a speech in front of Schöneberg Town Hall, at that time the official seat of Berlin's mayor Willy Brandt and his successors. It is here that the young president and bearer of hope for West Berliners utters the legendary words "ich bin ein Berliner" to huge applause and cheers from the crowd.

Just two days after Kennedy, the GDR authorities retaliate by inviting Kremlin leader Nikita Khrushchev on a state visit to East Berlin. But the East Berliners' enthusiasm for Khrushchev is muted in comparison...

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Berlin-West, Rathaus Schöneberg

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50

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52.484704

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13.343705

Berlin-West, Flughafen Tempelhof

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5

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52.48042797

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13.39259148

Berlin-West, Café Kranzler

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15

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52.50398728

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13.33110988

Berlin-Ost, Brandenburger Tor

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105

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52.5162209

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13.3778286

Berlin-Ost, Flughafen Schönefeld

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151

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52.38838247

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13.51919174

Berlin-Ost, Rotes Rathaus

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173

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52.518615

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13.408145

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date

March 15, 1963

Secret sand

In March 1963, 11-year-old Detlef Aagard, his parents and ten other people flee from Glienicke/Nordbahn in the GDR to West Berlin. They escape through a tunnel that starts in the living room of his parents’ house, which at the time stood right next to the border. As they dug the tunnel, Detlef’s family had to work out how to conceal several tonnes of sand around the house.
The border in Berlin ran for a total of 155 kilometres; the section stretching around the outer edge of West Berlin (separating the city from Brandenburg in East Germany) measured 112 kilometres. This film looks at how people living in Brandenburg experienced the Wall going up and what it was like to live in its shadow.

Bowling, the new trend

Berliners get on with their day-to-day life in the walled-in city. Despite the gloomy situation, they still find plenty of ways to enjoy their leisure time.
A new sport is all the rage in 1963: bowling. Played by both East and West Berliners – albeit using slightly different technology.

An escape fit for the circus

As a fireman in West Berlin, Werner Grützmann is often called out to the border between East and West. These operations generally involve him and his colleagues holding out rescue nets for East Berliners escaping by jumping out of windows. Just before Christmas in 1962, his unit is sent to Teltow Canal to respond to an unusual call for help.
In 2011, to mark the 50th anniversary of the Wall going up, the rbb interviewed Berliners to find out what the division of the city meant to them. The Wall had a profound impact on the way each person went about their daily lives - no matter what side they found themselves on. Overnight people were cut off from their friends and relatives, from their offices, factories and schools, and from places where they enjoyed spending their leisure time. The division of the city tore families apart, ruptured biographies and claimed many lives.

Peter Fechter dies trying to escape

Eighteen-year-old Peter Fechter is shot while trying to escape near Checkpoint Charlie. US soldiers, West Berlin police and GDR border guards fail to come to the rescue of the dying man. He bleeds to death in the death strip.
Crowds of people gather on both sides, but can do nothing but stand by and watch as he dies. That evening, thousands of West Berliners take to the streets to protest against the Wall. The mayor of Berlin, Willy Brandt, urges calm.
By November 1989, at least 136 people will have died at the Wall.
Margit Hosseini talks about what she experienced at Checkpoint Charlie on 17 August.

Expansion of the border fortifications

The Wall is refortified. The restricted zone behind the Wall is extended and surrounded by barbed wire and anti-tank trenches. A special permit is now required to enter the border area. The chances of escaping grow ever slimmer in 1963.
Work is also underway on West Berlin’s sector border. The authorities install markers in the Havel Lakes to alert and protect West Berlin's water sports enthusiasts.

Hertha in the Bundesliga

Berliners on both sides of the Iron Curtain share a passion for football. West Berliners' pride and joy: the club Hertha BSC. The “Champions of the Berlin City League” have been promoted to the new Bundesliga. As manager and vice president of the club, Wolfgang Holst helped Hertha get in the Bundesliga. However, Wolfgang recalls how the Berlin club was not a popular choice for star footballers from the Federal Republic.
The situation in the GDR league couldn't be more different: it is home to two East Berlin teams. The army sports club “Vorwärts” is competing for points against the State Security Service's club “Dynamo”. Neither of these clubs has any trouble attracting top players.

The Philharmonic Concert Hall opens

A new landmark emerges in West Berlin. The Philharmonic Concert Hall opens its doors in October 1963. Berliners are soon referring to the tent-like structure as Karajan’s Circus after the much-loved conductor. The hall was designed by architect Hans Scharoun and boasts a unique feature: the audience can see the orchestra from all angles.

The new heart of East Berlin at Alexanderplatz

The new heart of East Berlin is taking shape around Alexanderplatz: Kino International and Café Moskau are almost complete. The café will treat its guests to original Russian dishes.
Modern residential areas are also under construction in East Berlin, aiming to bring living standards up to the level of the West.

category

1961

Commuting between East and West

West Berlin 1961: political freedom, modest prosperity.
In East Berlin: SED Socialism is working hand-in-hand with the Soviet occupation.
Two systems – two currencies – one city.
Wolfgang Hermann commuted from East to West every day.

First border pass agreement

For the first time since 1961, small gaps start to appear in the Wall. The border pass agreement is signed on 17 December 1963, 28 months after the Wall goes up, allowing West Berliners to visit their relatives in the other part of the city over Christmas.
More than 700,000 West Berliners take advantage of this long-awaited chance to see their loved ones on the other side of the Wall. Some 1.2 million cross over to the East between 19 December and 5 January.
GDR post office workers are responsible for processing the permit applications. Although they are state employees, they do not represent East German public authorities like police or customs officials. As a result, the Federal Republic views the border pass agreement as an administrative agreement which does not signify recognition of the GDR. The SED regime, on the other hand, does everything it can to give the agreement the character of an international treaty.
A total of four border pass agreements are negotiated up until 1966.

Studio at the Barbed Wire

West Berlin's authorities mount illuminated display boards on the Springer high-rise near the Wall in an attempt to provide East Berliners with news from the West.
The Studio at the Barbed Wire was launched by the Berlin Senate in 1961 in cooperation with the American sector's radio station, RIAS Berlin: their goal is to provide information and news across the Wall in response to the propaganda blaring out of the GDR's speaker vans. This sparks a conflict dubbed the "speaker war", which does not end until October 1965.
Wolfgang Göbel was responsible for designing the display boards on the Springer high-rise back then.

Division of the evangelical synod

The evangelical church is fighting against moves to divide its diocese which still encompasses the whole of Berlin. In February 1966 Kurt Scharf is appointed as the new bishop. However, he cannot visit his East Berlin parishes, as he is refused access to East Berlin. Instead, he retains informal ties to Christians in the East.
Meinhard Schröder, then a theology student, talks about his connections with Christians in the East.

Four Power talks begin

Many Berliners have pinned their hopes on Willy Brandt, who has been Federal Chancellor since 1969. Will he help ease tensions between the two Germanies?
After a ten-year hiatus, the Western allies and the Soviet Union go back to the negotiating table and begin the Four Power talks on Berlin. They aim to improve conditions for Berliners by securing permanent visiting arrangements and introducing new regulations for transit traffic.
Klaus Schütz, SPD, was mayor of Berlin (West) and looks back at this period.

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November 10, 1989

Helmut Kohl at Schöneberg town hall

On 10 November 1989, the day after the border opens, Chancellor Kohl gives a speech at a rally in West Berlin in front of Schöneberg town hall. The building was the seat of the Mayor of Berlin from 1949 to 1991.
Also present at Schöneberg town hall are Walter Momper (Mayor of Berlin), Hans-Dietrich Genscher (West Germany’s foreign minister) and Willy Brandt (former chancellor).
Chancellor Kohl has to try and make himself heard above the noise of the crowd. In his speech, he underlines the importance of German unity, talks about a united Germany in Europe and takes time to remember all those who lost their lives at the Wall. He calls for the country to reject radical ideas and voices, and to remain calm and act wisely in the days and weeks to come.

Willy Brandt at Schöneberg town hall

On 10 November 1989, the day after the border opens, Willy Brandt is in West Berlin. The former chancellor served as Mayor of Berlin between 1957 and 1966, which means he was in power during the early years of the Wall.
Brandt joins Chancellor Kohl in speaking at a rally outside Schöneberg town hall, where a crowd of Berliners have gathered. In his speech, he says: “From the war, and from the discord between the allied powers, grew the line that eventually divided Europe and Germany. Berlin reproduced this line in numerous ways. But now here we are, and I thank God that it has happened in my lifetime, watching as the two halves of Europe begin finding their way back to each other.” His famous words, “What belongs together can now grow together”, were not actually part of this speech.
Also present at Schöneberg town hall are Walter Momper (Mayor of Berlin) and Hans-Dietrich Genscher (West Germany’s foreign minister).

Elections in East and West Berlin

The early parliamentary elections held in West Berlin on 10 May 1981 herald a major turning point in the city’s post-war history. The SPD are forced out of government for the first time, Richard von Weizsäcker of the centre-right CDU becomes Mayor of West Berlin and appoints Heinrich Lummer (CDU) as Senator of the Interior, and the Greens win seats for the first time ever.
The GDR is also going to the polls in a general election. Unsurprisingly, the SED led by General Secretary Honecker wins 99.86 percent of the vote.

Olympic gold medallist Manfred Wolke

East and West German athletes are competing in different teams at the Olympic Games for the first time – with different anthems, but still with the same flag.
Boxer Manfred Wolke wins a gold medal for the GDR.

Four Power Agreement

Twenty-five years after the end of the war, talks are launched in an attempt to finally clarify the status of Berlin. After lengthy negotiations, the US, the UK, France and the Soviet Union sign the Four Power Agreement on 3 September 1971.
It confirms that Berlin (West) is not a part of the Federal Republic of Germany, but acknowledges the special ties between Berlin (West) and West Germany. It also lays down provisions concerning transit traffic between the FRG and Berlin (West), the rights of West Berlin residents to visit the Eastern part of the city and the GDR and the extent of West German presence in Berlin (West). The agreement brings about noticeable improvements to the lives of Berliners – tensions between East and West are gradually easing.

Allied control ends

Allied control in Berlin has been governing relations between the occupying powers and West Germany since 1949. This control, along with Berlin’s special status, comes to an end in early October 1990, when the GDR becomes part of the Federal Republic of Germany.
The Two plus Four treaty is signed on 12 September 1990. It returns full sovereignty to Germany, giving the country sole control over its domestic and foreign affairs.

Attack on La Belle nightclub

A bomb attack on the American nightclub La Belle in West Berlin leaves three people dead and over 200 injured. It is the worst attack Berlin has suffered in recent years.
The US believe Libyan leader, Colonel Gaddafi, is behind the bombing, so on 15 April it retaliates with airstrikes on the capital, Tripoli.
Katja Bahadori is in the nightclub when the bomb goes off. She is taken to hospital with serious injuries.

Double-decker buses

Berlin Transport Authority's (BVG) double-decker buses wind through the city's streets decked out in bright and cheerful adverts in an attempt to generate funds for its cash-strapped coffers.
This is not the only innovation on the bus lines: for the first time since the war, women are also allowed behind the wheels of double-deckers. Up until 1971 this was prohibited by law.